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Measuring light pollution with smart photometers

Nature Reviews Earth & Environment volume 5, page 558 (2024)Cite this article

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Light pollution caused by artificial light at night is a growing environmental problem, particularly in urbanized areas in developed countries. Excessive light at night-time can hinder observational astronomy, disrupt the circadian rhythm of ecosystems and negatively impact human health. Light pollution mitigation relies on understanding the extent and evolution of the issue. However, established monitoring systems are costly and fail to provide continuous measurements of how night-time light levels are changing.

The accessibility and affordability of FreeDSM enables widespread light-pollution monitoring. Detailed real-time data on artificial light levels is essential for assessing light impacts on ecosystems. For example, FreeDSM is used to monitor light pollution at mariculture platforms near Vigo in Spain, and at astronomical observatories at La Silla in Chile and Montsec in Catalonia. Monitoring light pollution with FreeDSM can thus support the sustainable use of artificial lighting across marine and terrestrial environments, reducing its negative impacts on natural ecosystems and human health.

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Acknowledgements

This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science MCIN / AEI / 10.13039 / 501100011033 and the European Union Next Generation programme EU/PRTR through the coordinated grant PDC2021-121059 (https://gaia4sustainability.eu, C21 University of Barcelona, and C22 University of A Coruña). Later supported by EU Horizon Europe [HORIZON-CL4-2023-SPACE-01-71] SPACIOUS 101135205, and the EU FEDER Galicia 2021-27 ED431G 2023/01.

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  1. LIA2 research group, CIGUS CITIC, Centre for Information and Communications Technologies Research, Universidade da Coruña, A Coruña, Spain

    Mario Casado Diez

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  1. Mario Casado Diez
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Correspondence to Mario Casado Diez.

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Casado Diez, M. Measuring light pollution with smart photometers. Nat Rev Earth Environ 5, 558 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017-024-00580-8

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